Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) Short Interest Update

Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 11,790,000 shares, a growth of 6.8% from the December 31st total of 11,040,000 shares. Approximately 4.1% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 2,320,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 5.1 days.

Hormel Foods Trading Down 0.3 %

NYSE:HRL traded down $0.10 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $29.51. The company had a trading volume of 717,353 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,728,793. The company has a market capitalization of $16.20 billion, a PE ratio of 20.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.26. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $31.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $31.44. Hormel Foods has a 52 week low of $28.51 and a 52 week high of $36.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 2.32 and a quick ratio of 1.19.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, December 4th. The company reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by ($0.01). Hormel Foods had a net margin of 6.75% and a return on equity of 10.95%. The business had revenue of $3.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.14 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.42 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Hormel Foods will post 1.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hormel Foods Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, January 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, January 13th. This is a boost from Hormel Foods’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. Hormel Foods’s payout ratio is 79.45%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Steven J. Lykken acquired 4,904 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 6th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $32.47 per share, for a total transaction of $159,232.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 7,100 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $230,537. The trade was a 223.32 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Hormel Foods

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in shares of Hormel Foods by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 204,561 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,237,000 after purchasing an additional 1,835 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its position in shares of Hormel Foods by 10.6% in the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 32,573 shares of the company’s stock worth $993,000 after purchasing an additional 3,121 shares during the last quarter. Truist Financial Corp raised its position in shares of Hormel Foods by 110.8% in the 2nd quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 37,228 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,135,000 after purchasing an additional 19,571 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hormel Foods in the 2nd quarter worth about $272,000. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund raised its position in shares of Hormel Foods by 43.3% in the 2nd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 173,373 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,286,000 after purchasing an additional 52,373 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 40.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on HRL. BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of Hormel Foods in a research note on Monday, October 21st. They set an “underperform” rating and a $28.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Hormel Foods from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Barclays raised shares of Hormel Foods from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $31.17.

Hormel Foods Company Profile

Hormel Foods Corporation develops, processes, and distributes various meat, nuts, and other food products to retail, foodservice, deli, and commercial customers in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Retail, Foodservice, and International segments. The company provides various perishable products that include fresh meats, frozen items, refrigerated meal solutions, sausages, hams, guacamoles, and bacons; and shelf-stable products comprising canned luncheon meats, nut butters, snack nuts, chili, shelf-stable microwaveable meals, hash, stews, tortillas, salsas, tortilla chips, nutritional food supplements, and others.